


Unfinished Memory

by Rogercat



Category: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Elf/Human Relationship(s), F/M, First Age, Gift Exchange, Loyalty, Romance, Tragic Romance, passing of time
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-23
Updated: 2020-08-23
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:55:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26059090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rogercat/pseuds/Rogercat
Summary: Their romance, the first between a Elf and a mortal, was not something Andreth and Aegnor expected, but they remained loyal to each other
Relationships: Aegnor | Ambaráto & Angrod | Angaráto, Aegnor | Ambaráto/Andreth | Saelind, Andreth | Saelind & Finrod Felagund | Findaráto, Orodreth | Artaresto/Orodreth's Wife
Comments: 26
Kudos: 14
Collections: Tolkien Reverse Summer Bang 2020





	1. Aegnor and Andreth

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Mellaril (kuroimyuutsu)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kuroimyuutsu/gifts).



> Inspired by https://www.deviantart.com/mellaril/art/Unfinished-Memory-852667885

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aegnor and Andreth in summer

Year 384 of the First Age: 

Joyful feminine laughter mixed with the deeper voice of a male would have hinted to where Aegnor and Andreth were sitting on a hill not far from the village, if anyone was looking for them. But if anyone saw the young couple, they would have noticed that the male was not someone of the Race of Men like the young maiden at his side. His face was far fairer than a mortal, and the rich golden hair hinted to him being a relative to another Elf who first had met this people 74 years ago. 

“I know that your growing knowledge about the history and lore of your people will draw the attention of Orodreth, at least. For it is true that my brother is a scholar who focuses on various uses of medicinal herbs, he would love to learn how your people might use them in a different way.” 

Andreth smiled at what her lover just had spoken. 

“I am glad to hear about the possible chance to exchange knowledge with your brother, then, even if it is in different areas.” 

About two years had now passed since their first meeting, and Andreth knew that she was truly in love with Aegnor now when they had spent so many months almost constantly in the company of each other. Time to learn to know the other, and for their feelings to grow. Yes, he was as fair as all Elves, but it felt like he held an inner flame inside his very soul that drew her to him. As a mortal that would age and eventually die, Andreth would never hold the eternal beauty of the Elf-maidens, but Aegnor insisted on that it was not merely her appearance that he had fallen for. 

“ _It was something in your eyes that enchanted me, beloved._ ” 

It was perhaps silly sounding for a Elf in love to say, but Aegnor really did not know any other way to explain. After all, he had met with a few Elf-maids in faraway Tirion, for he was still a sought-after possible husband in high society despite being the youngest son of King Finwë's third son Finarfin, though it had never come to anything serious. 

But his first meeting with Andreth was so different that he could not find the right words for what had happened. He really was lost for words about their first meeting, apart from that it had felt as if the world had suddenly been sparking with colour instead of being different colours of grey. Not the short-lived beauty of mortal women before the bodily changes of motherhood and age started to claim them, but from how different she was in her soul. 

“Would you like me to bring you something next time I come here? Flowers are easily found here in the meadows, but maybe a nice fabric for a dress or some jewelry?” 

Andreth had to think about his offer for a bit. She preferred the clothing of her own people, though a dress made of elven-woven fabric sounded very tempting as a gift from him. If they were to marry as the first couple consisting of a mortal human and an immortal elf, and following the tradition of a bride moving into the home of her husband after the wedding, then she would need to start getting used to his culture. Aegnor would never force her to change herself, no, but trying to fit in, if just a little by wearing the same clothing, would perhaps make it easier for her to be accepted. 

“I think...some simple jewelry in the form of a butterfly. Yes, a butterfly-shaped brooch of silver would look nice against my skin colour, and it can be matched with my other clothing too.” 

The race of Men had awoken in the East, and among them who had arrived to Beleriand the House of Bëor had a light brown skin, dark eyes and dark brown or black curly hair inherited from those ancestors who had first awoken. Aegnor could see with his own imagination how a brooch of silver would be lovely on her. 

“Then I shall give you that at our next meeting, beloved.”

They kissed each other on the back of a hand, a rather chaste kiss by most standards but that had its origins in that they were not married and both their people had some rather strict rules about courtship.

~X~X~X~X~X~X

  
  


As he started to ride back to the fortress where he and Angrod ruled Dorthonion as vassals of Finrod, a surprise awaited Aegnor half a day out of Ladros: 

“Brother!” 

It was none other than Orodreth, bringing his Sindarin wife Calen and their daughter Finduilas along on a trip to meet his three brothers now that their youngest family member was old enough to manage the journey without needing to rest very often. 

“We thought it was high time to have Finduilas take part of her heritage of travels,” Orodreth greeted his youngest brother.

Of course, Minas Tirith was held in the hands of a trusted steward, because it was nothing uncommon for Orodreth to be away sometimes searching for new flora. In a way, the Exile to Middle-earth had turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Orodreth, who was able to eventually find a wife that did not find his chosen scholarship a strange choice for a prince of royal blood.

“A good choice, then, to travel in the blissful warmth of summer when the worst foes to face are bad weather and stinging insects like mosquitoes.” 

Mosquitoes, gnats and similar insects were a torment not only familiar to mortal people, the Elves also hated them for the itching bites that remained on the skin and the only reason to why Orodreth's family were currently free from them was thanks to the insect repelling herbs that his brother had formed into thick braids for a stronger effect and fastened in their hair and saddles. 

“Uncle, can you help me find some nice lavender flowers around here? I want to help atto and nana find herbs to make useful things for when we return home, like a lavender-scented soap for aunt Galadriel,” Finduilas asked, and her youngest uncle smiled at his niece:

“Of course, dear niece. It is true that your aunt can not leave Doriath often because she lives there with her husband, so I think she would be happy to get something you have helped to make. A soap with a flowery scent would be nice for her. Lavender is one of our mother Eärwen's favorites, too.” 

The joyful smile from Finduilas was enough reward for him, since she loved to learn more about the relatives that had not joined the Exile. 

~X~X~X~X~X~X

  
  


When Aegnor returned to Ladros in later summer, he gave Andreth the promised brooch of silver, shaped like a butterfly as she had wished it to be And just as she had said, it looked lovely on her clothing to bring out her colours. 

“I made this for you. Our people might not be rich in valuable materials because it is some generations since our ancestors met the Dwarves of the East and made some brief trade with them before moving onwards on their journey from Hildórien, but given what you have said about the Grinding Ice further north…” 

A knitted long scarf in bright colours. The sort of clothing that people never had used in Valinor because of its mild climate even during winters. 

“This is the best gift I can have in this cold season of the year, because warmth was one of the best ways to keep us alive on the Grinding Ice.”

Her smile could have rivaled the sun, joyful as it was over his words. The scarf of wool was not only wonderful warm when he spun it around his neck, the bright colours seemed like a promise of the rich colours found during summer. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I prefer using the -77 Silmarillion canon where Orodreth is the second son of Finarfin and Eärwen, thus making him the older brother of Aegnor. As the fourth son of Finarfin, himself the third son of Finwë, Aegnor would have been pretty low in line to the Kingship over the Noldor in Valinor, since both his uncles and their respective sons would have come before Finarfin and his four sons. 
> 
> In canon Tolkien sadly never named the Sindarin wife of Orodreth, so I used Calen as a name for her from my other stories where she and Orodreth show up. Finduilas has no canonical birth year but she must have been of age, 100 years according to Noldorin standards, in order to be betrothed to Gwindor in year 472 when he was captured in the Battle of Unnumbered Tears, and personally I really like the idea of that she could have grown inspiration from the love story from Aegnor and Andreth to stay loyal to Gwindor despite how his time in slavery made him seem like “the aged among mortal men” 
> 
> The Men of the House of Bëor descended from the tribes of Men who abandoned Hildórien, the land in the far east of Middle-earth in which the first Men awoke at the beginning of the First Age, for the West after being in war with other Men who fell under the dark power of Morgoth. They followed a road around northern Rhûn where they met some Dwarves, so perhaps some form of trade happened there


	2. Separation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aegnor comes to regret leaving her

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for mentions of depression in chapter 2  
> (I am sorry, Aegnor!)

One cold day in early autumn when he returned to Dorthonion, Aegnor did not act normally. He was unusually quiet, and there was a haunting, agonizing look in his eyes for everyone to see as he let a stable groom care for his horse after the journey. 

“Brother, what happened? Did you and lady Andreth have an argument about something and you both needed some distance between you to cool down before making a apology…?” Angrod asked carefully when he saw his little brother, keeping a respectful distance when he sensed it was needed. Even if his wife Eldalótë had not joined him into exile to Middle-earth, the third son of Finarfin was still familiar with how marriage or having a lover were not always peaceful. But Aegnor did not answer him, just walking past his brother and up to his own chamber. 

The youngest son of Finarfin and Eärwen did not talk to anyone over the following days. Then, when the days turned into weeks and months with him not returning to Ladros again, it became clear that something must be horribly wrong when Aegnor only ate half of his food portions or sometimes barely anything at all. For those who knew Aegnor best, like his siblings and the servants, his lack of appetite was a far too painful reminder of how things could be on the Grinding Ice, when someone would stop eating the very strictly rationed food and slowly starved to death among the cold because they entered a stage of despair, as if any hope of warmth and proper food again abandoned them. 

And then he only mentioned briefly what had happened: 

He had left Andreth, because according to the Laws of the Eldar, no marriages could happen during times of war. Of course, not everyone among the Exiles followed those laws, but as a Prince of the Noldor, Aegnor had been brought up with knowing that with his social status, came great responsibility. 

"I did not want to do it...her cries...her begging for me to come back...."

He had forced himself to not look back despite her pleading, and only began to weep himself when she no longer could be heard in the distance.

~X~X~X~X~X~X

  
  


When Finrod got a letter from Angrod about how deeply Aegnor's depression ran, telling him in only a few words about what had happened between their youngest brother and Andreth, the oldest brother held his head in both his hands, in a manner that mortals would have mistaken as a migraine incoming. 

“We do not know how a marriage between a Elf and a mortal would turn out in the long run…”

But he knew that the depression needed to be treated, unless they risked Aegnor losing the will to live. In Valinor, this sort of emotional reaction on a big change in life had mostly not been spoken of, even among the healers, because most associated it with the fate of Miriel, the first wife of their grandfather. Yet here in Middle-earth where they had learned that Miriel was hardly the only mother who seemed unable to find something to be happy about in the following weeks and month after the birth of her child, and how it could happen not only among Elven mothers but also mortal ones, it was impossible to ignore it. 

“I hate it...feeling worthless in such a situation…” 

Being unable to help his youngest brother was not something Finrod was used to. As the oldest sibling, it had once been natural that they might seek his help for something if their parents were not nearby, and some of that lived on even now when they were fully grown adults. 

  
~X~X~X~X~X~X

Thankfully during his courtship of Calen, a period where he lived with her nomadic tribe as a sign of respect towards her origins, Orodreth had helped their healers with treating patients and now he used some of that knowledge to help his youngest brother. Even if he was more of a scholar than actual healer, the second-born son of Finarfin had some basic skills in medicine that was useful. 

“Based on what I learned from my in-laws, your depression is not the fatal one that will lead to death eventually, but it is serious nonetheless. We need to have a set routine, and start with small goals to do everyday. Daily exercise, food and enough sleep will also help.”

Aegnor said nothing, but he trusted his second-oldest brother to at least try his best to help. As painful as it was to leave Andreth like he had done, he knew that his family and relatives could need him alive in the future. Not to mention, it felt somewhat better knowing that they would not dismiss his depression as something shameful that was not needing treatment, like it would have been in Valinor once. The whole thing with Miriel had been a bitter lesson for both the Elves and Valar in how not to deal with people not fitting in into whatever others expected them to act. 

  
  


One day when Aegnor opened the window stills to let in the daylight, he realized that it was already winter, with snow on the ground. 

“Cold…” was all he could say and think about in that moment. All of the Elves who had survived following his uncle Fingolfin across the Grinding Ice had come to loathe the cold season of the year, because of the memories the snow and winter cold brought up. 

_Silver land. Think of it as a silver land instead. One formed from stories, where many kinds of adventure awaits for those who enter that world._

The memory of what Andreth had spoken back in the first winter he had visited her, and she had seen his discomfort in being outside and surrounded by the winter landscape. Her presence at his side had been like a warming fire, promising that that there would soon be spring again. But now, when they would no longer face the future together, it all seemed like the Grinding Ice again. A cold, lifeless world of ice and snow, with no way of knowing when it finally ended. 

“Warmth...warmth…”

The fire in the fireplace was already burning, but Aegnor was looking for something else in the chest filled with the clothes he normally wore now during winter. And there it was, the scarf Andreth had gifted him some years ago. When he picked up the scarf in his hands, the Elf lord could feel the warmth of the wool yarn like it had felt on the day when he first had used it. 

“Andreth…” 

If it was that he would never see her again, then Aegnor would treasure this gift from her as much as his memories of her.

“I am sorry...I am so sorry, Andreth…” 

Those whispered words of regret, together with her sorrowful face and the revealing sounds as she wept when he refused to look back over his shoulder, would haunt him for the rest of his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I once saw a suggestion somewhere about that Miriel was not only spiritually drained by the birth of her son, but that she also suffered from postpartum depression and that no one in Valinor, perhaps not even Estë, really knew how to treat it at that time because Valinor was meant to be a place of security and joy, and the Valar were not yet familiar with how the bodies and minds of the Elves worked. I think that with the Exile and meeting with the Race of Men, the Noldor Elves likely became more aware that Miriel was not a solo case of depression and that it actually is not unheard of a mother struggling to find joy in her baby and motherhood.
> 
> So basically the Noldor exiles have been learning a couple of things that the First Elves in Cuiviénen might have known about, but it was not talked about in Valinor as it was meant as a happy place with no dangers and that should have affected more people than they might have wanted to admit


	3. Finrod

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finrod meets with Andreth in the autumn of year 409

Year 409 of the First Age of the Sun, Ladros: 

The mortal wisewoman was just two years away from turning fifty years old. Had she been a Elf, like the King of Nargothrond himself now when he came riding to the village, she would still have been too young for courtship since her body would not even have started to mature into that of a adult She-elf yet, but in the ways of her own race, she had already passed her childbearing years several years ago. If she had been a married wife with adult children, and widowed since some years ago, no one would have raised an eyebrow if she had wed a second husband to have some comfort in old age while being cared for by children and grandchildren. 

But Andreth had never married. Remaining loyal to Aegnor despite having not seen him for two and a half decades, she had instead became a wisewoman among her own people, now being one of the teachers about their own history and lore from the time before Bëor the Old and his people had been found by Finrod nearly a century ago. 

“Lady Andreth,” Finrod greeted her as he dismounted from his horse and let it run freely to the meadows nearby. 

“Brother-in-law,” she responded with clear irony in her voice while turning around to face the newcomer, given that had she and Aegnor indeed married, they would have been in-laws by now. On the front of her dress, the butterfly brooch in silver was still there, forever a haunting reminder of her love for his brother. And even today, Aegnor kept true to his promise about never taking anyone other than Andreth as his bride, that Finrod knew. 

“I am glad to see that you are well.” 

She merely gave him a nod with her head towards the left, a quiet request to follow her over to her small cottage. 

~X~X~X~X~X~X

  
  


As the sky released the promised rain from the grey sky, it was only natural for them to share the simple meal of bread, cheese and fresh fruits inside her home. It had been a summer rich in food, and the harvest was promising to be fruitful enough to last until spring unless the winter turned into a harsh one. 

“Make a long story short: Are you here to tell me that I have been replaced as the lover of your brother by some fair Elf maid that he will marry soon?” Andreth finally asked after a long silence after that all the food was gone from the wooden plates and she had added firewood on the fire for warmth and light. The unexpected question caused Finrod to spit out his remaining drink in shock. Surely she did not think it to be like that, his visit being to tell her that Aegnor had stopped loving her after all those years?! 

“He has never stopped loving you! He is still…”

Damn, he could not find the right words. And his lack of ability to not finish what he planned to say, only made Andreth look at Finrod with a cold glare. Her black eyes, which once had looked with such warmth at Aegnor, now transformed as she mistook it for mockery: 

“Still loving me for how I looked, for over two and a half decades ago? Do not joke with me, King of Nargothrond. The time of my youth is long past, as well any chances we could have used to try having children together. At my age, any attempt of pregnancy is non-existent. My red river of womanhood has run dry some three years hence, and no child ever left my womb into the living world outside my body, nor has my womb ever been filled by a male to result in a child. For Aegnor, in a vain hope of that he would return to me when he realized his folly of leaving me, I refused marriage and motherhood for the role of being a wisewoman.” 

Somehow now when she said those things, Finrod managed to find the words he had been about to tell her earlier: 

“ **_Even today, despite that you two have not met for 25 years, he loves you so much that he gave up any chance to have a wife or children for the rest of eternity._ **”

Andreth was stunned by what the Elf lord just had spoken. Surely he must be joking? How could she trust that Aegnor still thought of her in such a manner, rather than a possible mistake from less than three decades ago, when they had not met again since that late summer day in her 23rd year of life? No, Finrod was not the type to joke carelessly or without thinking of how his words might sound, not about such important matters that meant a lot for other people. 

With slightly trembling hands, she touched the butterfly brooch if she was dreaming, recalling the three years of happiness and joy with Aegnor that would never return. The memory of his golden hair in the sunlight, the gentle touches of her face as he smiled on her… 

“ _Prove it,_ ” she finally spoke in a faint voice, “prove to me that Aegnor still loves me after all those years, else I shall not believe you.” 

Finrod could not blame her for the doubt about his words or fearing that he was lying. Two and a half decades was a long time for a mortal woman, Andreth having spent more than half of her life haunted by her love for an elven prince and Aegnor had made no contact with her again since that day. Both of them had their “what-ifs” moments, wondering how their lives might have turned if they had chosen differently that day. 

“Is this enough proof for you?” he asked, pulling out something from an inner pocket. In his open hand laid a medallion, the kind that could be opened, with her painted image inside. And the date, written in tiny letters, was of the last summer they had together. 

A memory of Aegnor broke though the surface of her mind, of his tender smiles and gentle hands as he touched her face, whispering words of love and faithfulness to her. 

“By the Holy Mother of Life…” she whispered, mentioning one of the gods that the House of Bëor still worshipped, since for the race of Men, the Valar were just the names of the unfamiliar gods which the Noldor prayed to and not many of them had chosen to convent to the faith of the Valar or the All-Father. For the mortals, abandoning their old gods often felt like a betrayal to their ancestors and Finrod respected that part of their life. 

“Gods...that fool…we are both fools even now after all those years...”

Andreth spoke those words without her previous bitterness, and her eyes were shining in a manner that revealed the hint of tears. She was not yet fully convinced she was still the only one for Aegnor. The daylight was vanishing, and Finrod added some firewood on the fire so that they had better light to see each other in the half-darkness, in addition to the candles she lit just before the meal. 

“...I was young and I looked at his flame, and now I am old and lost. He was young and his flame leapt towards me, but he turned away, and he is young still. Do candles pity moths?” she finally spoke again, the light showing a shadow of her gone youth. 

'Or moths candles, when the wind blows them out?' Finrod responded, for he did not know what the All-Father had for intention with the afterlife for mortals. Darkness fell in the room. At seeing her hands shiver slightly, not from cold but possibly fear, he took her hand in the light of the fire. 

“Whither go you?” she wondered. 

“North away,” he said, “to the swords, and the siege, and the walls of defense—that yet for a while in Beleriand rivers may run clean, leaves spring, and birds build their nests, ere Night comes.”

Andreth felt some unease about that. North, that meant Angband and Morgoth, the Dark Lord. 

“Will he be there, bright and tall, and the wind in his hair? **_Tell him._ ** Tell him not to be reckless. Not to seek danger beyond need!”

The thought of Aegnor being hurt in battle was something Andreth could not bear. She knew how scars could affect how people looked, had seen it so many times on the men who were warriors among her own people. The thought of her beloved Elven prince with a scar...no, she wanted him to remain unhurt, remain how she remembered him. 

“I will tell him,” promised Finrod, “But I might as well tell thee not to weep. He is a warrior, Andreth, and a spirit of wrath. In every stroke that he deals he sees the Enemy who long ago did thee this hurt.” 

She knew. Aegnor was a warrior, ever a protector of those who needed it. If he feared her to be in danger, he would not hesitate to send her to safety, rather than risk her life.

“But you are not for Arda. Whither you go may you find light. Await us there, my brother—and me.” 

Andreth began to weep. Whatever it was tears of joy or sorrow, Finrod did not know. But she rose from her chair, and picked out something from a small casket near the bed in one corner. 

“When you see him next time, give him this as proof that I have remained faithful to him, just as he has been to me.” 

In her hands laid a silver maang tika, a piece of head jewelry only worn by married women in the House of Bëor. According to their faith, the spot where it sat on the forehead of a married woman, also signified the holy union of the husband and wife on a spiritual, physical and emotional level. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> According to the timeline on Tolkien Gateway, Finrod first met with Bëor and his people in year 310 of the First Age, so in year 409, the year Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth took place, it would have been 99 years since aka nearly a century past 
> 
> About the House of Bëor still worshipping their old gods instead of the Valar in this story; The Noldor likely lost some faith in the Valar when the Darkening of Valinor happened since Finwë was murdered and the Valar failing to catch and imprison Morgoth in the Halls of Mandos again when finding out that he was behind Fëanor's actions before his exile to Formenos and the Exile to Middle-earth means that they can not return to Valinor even if they regret following Fëanor. So it is not impossible that the race of Men still keeps their old religions even after arriving to Beleriand, but that they with time will accept the Valar and Eru the All-Father as their religion too


	4. Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The two lovers meet again after nearly three long decades apart

Seasons passed, as the years always did. It was spring once again, this fine day that was almost warm enough to be summer. Andreth was already outside to find more herbs for medicine and other uses, placing them in her wicker basket as she knelt on the warm ground covered in green spring grass and flowers. 

“It is high time that I take an apprentice to pass on my knowledge to the newer generations…” 

Of course, Andreth knew that her family tended to be long-lived, but she wanted to train a successor while she still had the energy for such a task. There were many bright girls among her people, one of them would be perfect if Andreth just made sure that the girl was a good choice and not likely to grow arrogant in adulthood and look down on others for not having the same knowledge as herself. Stories could be told about such poorly chosen girls ruining their chance to have a high status among their people that was not tied to marriage with a powerful husband or motherhood, and how the wisewoman ended up needing to start all over again with another girl. 

“I should take a look at the girls and see for myself. Asking the parents about their personalities, and from others as well, for family and those not related do not always share the same view on a person…” 

Andreth had no idea that she was being watched from a distance, by a tall figure hiding himself between the tall pine trees outside her village. It was her butterfly brooch that revealed her, as she always wore it on her bodice, refusing to hide the gift away like some shameful secret she no longer wanted to be reminded of.

  
  


Aegnor had finally found the courage he needed to meet Andreth again, when Finrod returned last autumn and gave him the silver maang tika alongside a tale of how their talk had gone. But he waited with the journey to Ladros until late spring, because that had been the season when they first met.

And the passing years had turned her more beautiful, in a manner that would never happen with immortal Elves. For Aegnor, Andreth's aging proved that while mortal, she would forever be one he always loved. 

“Le i veleth e-guil nîn, Andreth.”

Andreth froze at hearing a man behind her. The sound of the voice was too real to be from her memories. For a moment, she did not dare to turn around, fearing to see the empty landscape and that he would only be a fragment from her past that haunted her. 

But he was there. Proudly wearing the maang tika like a crown, the silver jewelry standing out against his golden hair and blue clothing, not the same set he had worn on their last meeting two and a half decades ago, but still enough fine clothing to mark him as an Elf of high social rank. 

“Aegnor…!” 

He looked both happy and sad to see her again. 

“I was a fool to leave you instead of taking the chance of a life together with you. Can you ever forgive me for such foolishness…?!” 

To his surprise, Aegnor found himself hugged tightly by her. Their height difference made it a little awkward, given how tall he was, but she did not care if anyone saw them at this moment. 

“You came back...you came back...you really came back! You idiot, wasting almost twenty-six years that I spent alone...you Elves honestly need to start acting faster, else you will lose the chance to fix something you regret…!!” Andreth wept against his chest, as Aegnor held her closely. But those tears were not in anger over the lost years, rather from happiness over that he was brave enough to see her again now when she had aged and not merely recalling her as a young woman. 

“Yes, I am a thoughtless fool compared to your wisdom, beloved.”

“You are **_my_ ** thoughtless fool, Aegnor.” 

Their lips met in a kiss as proof of an unspoken promise to not break apart again. This time he would not be a coward and leave her again. Perhaps they would never marry, but Aegnor intended to come back to Andreth for as long as she lived, for as long as this Siege of Angband did not break and he was needed to defend Dorthonion. He had failed her once in the past, causing pain for them both for nearly three decades. It would not happen a second time, he had promised himself that and this he now swore to her: 

“ _May our paths never split again, even in the afterlife._ ” 

Together, they would face everything. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Le i veleth e-guil nîn is a Sindarin formal saying towards a female meaning “You are the love of my life.”
> 
> I really wanted this story to have a happy ending given how their canon fates are, and I love the idea of Aegnor meeting Andreth again when she is older, in her role as a wisewoman, as a contrast to her younger self and I am of the firm belief that he would still love her even when she is no longer a fair young maid. Besides, this meeting would give them both some joy after the grief of being separated for so long
> 
> So a mostly happy ending with them more or less reuniting and planning to marry in secret in order to not be separated again until death

**Author's Note:**

> I prefer using the -77 Silmarillion canon where Orodreth is the second son of Finarfin and Eärwen, thus making him the older brother of Aegnor. As the fourth son of Finarfin, himself the third son of Finwë, Aegnor would have been pretty low in line to the Kingship over the Noldor in Valinor, since both his uncles and their respective sons would have come before Finarfin and his four sons. 
> 
> In canon Tolkien sadly never named the Sindarin wife of Orodreth, so I used Calen as a name for her from my other stories where she and Orodreth show up. Finduilas have no canonical birth year but she must have been of age, 100 years according to Noldorin standards, in order to be betrothed to Gwindor in year 472 when he was captured in the Battle of Unnumbered Tears, and personally I really like the idea of that she could have grown inspiration from the love story from Aegnor and Andreth to stay loyal to Gwindor despite how his time in slavery made him seem like “the aged among mortal men” 
> 
> The Men of the House of Bëor descended from the tribes of Men who abandoned Hildórien, the land in the far east of Middle-earth in which the first Men awoke at the beginning of the First Age, for the West after being in war with other Men who fell under the dark power of Morgoth. They followed a road around northern Rhûn where they met some Dwarves, so perhaps some form of trade happened there


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